


Welcome to the Ark

by nychus



Series: IgNoct Week 2018 [3]
Category: ARK: Survival Evolved, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Crossover, Dinosaurs, M/M, slight non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-03
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-13 06:31:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13564824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nychus/pseuds/nychus
Summary: Noctis wakes to find himself on a beach naked and alone. He's got a weird implant on his left arm and there's suddenly a bunch of people chasing a giant lizard out of the forest.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I thought it might be fun to throw the boys into the Ark, separate them, and give them cool mounts that kinda fits them. This is lacking in the story elements of Ark itself (whatever Helena, Rockwell, and the others were up to) but the dinosaur dossiers are around, so I guess someone was doing something.
> 
> Anyway, plopping chapter one down now. Second chapter will be part of IgNoct Week 2018, as that's where the IgNoct happens.

It started when Noctis woke up on a beach. He was alone, naked, and for some reason had some sort of diamond shaped implant on his left forearm. The armiger was locked, he could feel it there, but there was no way to access it. He suspected the implant had something to do with it.

Looking around, he tried not to panic. Where were the others? The last thing he remembered was heading towards Lestallum to turn in some hunts. He still had a car, clothes, and they certainly were nowhere near a beach.

The sound of a bird drew his attention. It was a dopey looking thing, no bigger than a chocobo chick. Noctis watched it stop and scratch at the sand a bit before continuing on, presumably looking for food.

Food. Yes, food would be important. Water too. Eyeing the water lapping on the beach, Noctis suspected it was saltwater and therefore not drinkable. There were bushes nearby, but he didn’t have Gladio’s survival skills to know what berries wouldn’t make him sick.

Something moved in the corner of his eye and Noctis turned his attention towards the movement. A very large lizard thing with a huge sail on its back came running out of the forest roaring loudly. Noctis watched, fascinated, as the creature turned around once it was in the water and started snapping at what looked to be a half-dozen people shooting it with arrows.

People were a good sign. People who could take down a terrifying creature like that was even better. Hopefully they were friendly.

Noctis waited until the creature toppled over and the people swarmed around it before heading over. He hoped being naked without any visible sign of weapon would let them know he meant no harm, but as soon as someone spotted him, all six people had pikes and bows pointed at him.

The only thing Noctis could do was raise his hands in surrender and wait. Eventually someone stepped out of the group towards him.

“You just get here?” he asked.

“Uh, yeah,” Noctis answered.

The group exchanged glances before lowering their weapons. Four of them went back to tending the creature while two came to talk to Noctis.

“Name’s Cal,” the guy who first said anything greeted. “This is Ivy.”

“Hey,” Ivy said, smiling. “Welcome to the Ark.”

“The Ark?” Noctis asked. “Noctis, but what’s the Ark?”

“Not really sure,” Cal said. “We all just kind of wake up here one day and try not to die. It’s not easy to go alone, so you’re lucky we found you.”

“You are welcome to join us, Noctis. Our camp is up the river some. Once we get this guy tamed up, we’ll be heading home,” Ivy said.

“Yeah, sure, thanks,” Noctis said, eyeing the animal again.

The animal was a Spinosaurus, or Spino for short. The River Tribe found them useful for fishing and so would tame them whenever they got a chance. They had chased this one away from their camp before it finally went down.

It wasn’t too long after Noctis joined the little group did a few other members of the tribe showed up. They came riding on more lizard-like animals (Iguanodons, they said) carrying bandages, food, and extra clothes if needed. Noctis was thankful for the clothing they handed over.

While they waited for the Spino to tame, Cal did his best to answer any questions that Noctis had. Everyone came from different planets, it seemed. No one had heard of Eos and no one had ever previously known someone else on the Ark.

They thought this was some sort of experiment and they were being monitored. The reason this was the prevailing theory was because a holographic type scream came up when you tapped the implant and supply drops were come down every so often. No one knew who was monitoring them or why. No one knew why they chose who they brought to the Ark or how they did it. It just seemed to happen.

There were multiple tribes around the world and most didn’t like each other. The River Tribe had an alliance with the Woodsmen where they traded fish and pearls for resources the others could get a hold of. The Mountain Tribe was thought to have an alliance with the Redwoods Tribe, but Cal wasn’t completely sure about that. He did know that the mountain men were rather tyrannical and wanted the whole of the Ark for themselves. There were a few tribes in the snowy north, but other than their existence, Cal couldn’t say anything more.

Hours later, as the sun was beginning to kiss the horizon, the Spino finally woke up to the delight of the crowd. The anger that had been there before was gone and the animal seemed quite content to be patted and hugged by the people. It was bizarre, Noctis thought, but he could do nothing but go with it.

As a group, they followed the river for what must have been a couple of hours before torchlight came into view. Noctis could see high stone walls lined with standing torches and people carrying torches as they patrolled. There was a shout from someone as they drew near the large gate and said gate opened with quite a few groans.

There were cheers from the crowd as they welcomed the new Spino into their tribe. Then when Cal introduced Noctis, he got a lot of attention as well. It wasn’t hard to tell he was tired and worn out from the strange events of the day, so he was shown to a bed and allowed to rest.

Sleep didn’t come for a very long time as Noctis kept thinking about the others. Were they worried? Could they figure out a way to find him? Would he ever get home? Eventually, though, exhaustion set in and sleep allowed his mind to relax.

~*~*~*~*~

Noctis found he fit in with the River Tribe very well. When asked if he had any skills, they laughed at his claim at being a proficient fisherman. Everyone said they could fish when they first joined the tribe. They were quite impressed at the number of fish Noctis was able to haul in and were quick to set him up with the other fishermen of the tribe.

A woman named Elise took him under her wing. She was the head fisherman and she made sure he had everything he needed. This included getting him a mount. A Baryonyx was tamed not too long ago and it hadn’t been claimed, so Gar became Noctis’s trusty steed. There was also an otter pup that was a few weeks old that took a liking to him. Elise said that once otter was fully grown, she would be invaluable, able to catch her own fish, grab some pearls, and help keep him warm as the otters tended to wrap around their person’s neck. Noctis thought about naming her Carbuncle, but decided that was a little too close to home, so he opted to name her Vesper instead. Vesper would often ride along on Gar while the fishermen went out and curling around Noctis’s neck while fished and then while he slept.

Through Elise, Noctis learned that the tribe leader, Steve, had been in the Ark for nearly five years and thus was the one who had been there the longest. Steve said that some of the other tribes had people who came in when he did or slightly before, but he figures he was likely one of the first.

Steve kept up a library with any information he or any of the tribesmen could find, which included dossiers on the different animals of the world. They had information on all their animals, most of which were water dwellers, including frogs, crocodiles, and crocodile-like dinosaurs that included the Spino and the Baryonyx. They did have a few horses and managed to get a couple of sheep from the Woodsmen. Their only flyers were birds with jagged bills known as Pelagornis and those were happier swimming than they were flying it seemed.

Noctis was happy with Gar, who he’d watch swim in the makeshift pond when he could, glad to have a mount that was manageable.

He helped where he could around camp, putting all the skills Gladio had ever taught him to use, but it was clear fishing needed to be his main concern. When he said he had been a prince, the others didn’t believe him initially, but started to change their minds when they realized how difficult it was to get him out of bed in the morning.

Noctis never stopped trying to access the armiger. He would try at random times and wondered if he could figure out a way to short-circuit the implant. Ivy had told him that there were electric eels in the ocean and giant jellyfish that could give an electric shock, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to electrocute himself in the middle of the water. He certainly didn’t trust anyone enough to let them in on his magical suitcase. (Ignis would die if he heard Noctis refer to it as that.)

~*~*~*~*~

Four months into his time on the Ark, he was asked to accompany the envoy to the Woodsmen’s camp. Noctis wasn’t keen too, he couldn’t bring Gar and had to ride a horse instead, but he didn’t complain. Part of him was curious to see another tribe of people and their camp.

The Woodsmen camp was west of their own and was half a day’s journey. They would get to the camp, which was nestled along the ridge of a flatten plateau, do their trades, make camp for the evening, and head back the following day. Simple.

The River Tribe reached the camp just after lunch and the Woodsmen had their tradable goods sitting out a few hundred feet from their camp walls.

Noctis allowed the traders to do their thing, he was only along to answer questions about fish if they should come up. Usually the Woodsmen were happy to take the fish without a fuss, but sometimes one of them would get a bit ornery. Usually Elise was the one to come, but she was fighting a cold and didn’t think it would be wise to come.

Without anything to do, Noctis leaned against a boulder and watching Vesper play. She was bouncing after butterflies, still very much a pup despite being a full-fledged adult. There was a lot about Vesper that reminded him a Prompto and how he missed his best friend.

It was that moment that a group of Woodsmen came running in on dinosaurs; Raptors if Noctis remembered correctly. Noctis watched with vague interest as the group of four rode directly up to the trading and unloaded some hide. It looked like it’d come off the original owner an hour ago. It was kind of disgusting.

He was turning his attention back to Vesper when a flash of bright yellow caught his eye. Snapping towards the color, he stared. It was shorter and it wasn’t styled, but there was no way it didn’t belong to Prompto.

“Prompto!” he yelled as he got to his feet. Everyone turned to look at him, but Noctis didn’t notice. All he saw was the look of recognition slide across the blonde’s face.

“NOCT!” he cried and the two ran to each other, hitting hard in a hug and falling to the ground.

They hugged and cried and laughed until they couldn’t breathe. Their tribesmen watched on astonished. Vesper came sniffing and what was clearly Prompto’s Raptor did too.

“I didn’t think… I thought I… Man, look at you!” Prompto said once he regained some of his faculties. “How are you still so pale? I’m nothing but sunburn and freckles!”

“Life under the forest canopy,” Noctis laughed. 

“Uh, Woodsmen tribe? We literally live in the woods,” Prompto said motioning around them.

Noctis could only shrug. “Six, Prom, you have no idea how good it is to see you. I thought I was the only one here.”

“Yeah, they told me no one has ever been from the same place before,” Prompto said. “Think Iggy and Gladio are here too?”

Noctis shrugged. “Not sure we’ll ever find out,” he said quietly nodding towards the others. The understanding on Prompto’s face told him his tribe was as likely to go check out other tribes as his own. 

They’ll figure out something. They have to know.

The knowledge that two people who actually knew each other were on the Ark did cause quite a stir, but no one could doubt them because their familiarity was clear. Eventually the traders went back to work and Noctis and Prompto were allowed to catch up.

Vesper was a little slow to accept Prompto, but she eventually warmed up to him. The Raptor, Firebrand, was very standoffish and stuck close to Prompto. At one point, a Dimorphodon flew down to settle on Prompto’s shoulder, and the blonde introduced her as Trixie. Trixie was very friendly and was soon chasing after Vesper.

Prompto stayed outside the camp for the night. Neither of them were naïve enough to think one tribe would allow the other in, so they came up with a plan to keep in touch. Prompto could send Trixie with notes whenever, but Noctis had no way to reciprocate. They’d figure it out later. Most of the evening was spent regaling each other with close calls and camp life.

It was hard to say goodbye the following morning. Noctis had finally found a friend, his best friend, and he couldn’t stay. But, knowing that Prompto was here and near was helpful. Suddenly Noctis didn’t feel so alone and between the two of them, perhaps they could figure out how to get back home.

Once back at the River Tribe camp, Steve and the rest of the tribe were curious to know about Prompto and Noctis wondered if they were perhaps beginning to think about seeing if others had friends in different tribes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did try to think logically of where the different tribes would be. Prompto was originally part of a plains tribe, but the only really plains area was right next to the volcano, so that was a no go. The Island should probably be seen as being larger than represented in game, cuz otherwise you could get from one end of the map to the other in a day if you have the right mount, and that just seems silly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis meets the Mountain Tribe and learns how awful they truly are.
> 
> Slight unpleasantness in terms of non-con, but it doesn't get far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 2 for IgNoct Week 2018. Simple Prompt: Burn the world for you

Life was fairly normal for the prince. He got letters from Prompto regularly and sent back his own. Some days Trixie would show up randomly to see if there was anything he wanted to send, which was nice. It felt a lot like passing the journal between himself and Luna via Umbra. Mostly they just kept each other up to date on the daily goings on, but occasionally one would put forth an idea to check out another tribe or maybe get to one of the giant obelisks. There was one not too far from Prompto’s camp, but it was strictly forbidden to go there.

Some seven months into his time on the Ark, the fishermen were sent farther away from their camp than normal. Salmon were spawning and the best place for them was about a day’s journey north, near the redwoods. Because it was known the Mountain Tribe were friendly with those in the redwoods and they had no qualms about taking prisoners, several hunters joined the fishing group for protection.

It turned out protection was not needed, or so they thought. Their three day trip was peaceful without a rumble from another tribe. The night before they were to head back, however, was when all hell broke loose.

Several small dinosaurs with glowing eyes ran into camp, biting everyone they could. Noctis was vaguely aware of the commotion going on around him once he hit the ground after a bite. He registered shouts and screams, but he couldn’t really tell who they were coming from. He could feel Vesper standing on him, hissing and he thought Gar was trying to stay between him and the enemy, but in the end, he didn’t know what was real or what was venom induced.

Noctis was fully aware again to find himself dangling from the jaws of a larger dinosaur with glowing eyes. He was tied up with a loop hanging in the animal’s mouth. Below him, those tiny dinosaurs were circling. Looking around, he could see Elise, Cal, and the other three fishermen in a similar position to himself. Noctis wondered where the hunters were, was Cal the only one to survive? Or was he just the only one captured?

The sun was rising when the group made it to their destination, the Mountain Tribe’s camp near the base of the volcano. It was intimidating to look at. The outer walls were made of metal and there were towers every few feet that seemed to have bowmen in them.

The prisoners were flung into a jail cell with no circumstance causing Noctis to wonder if they were taken for any other reason than for the hell of it. The tribesmen seemed unconcerned about their capture and more concerned with welcoming the hunting party back.

From inside the cell, Noctis, Elise, and Cleo went to the windows to look out. From there they could see three of their otters (one was Vesper, which made Noctis’s heart clench as he yelled for her) were roughly thrown into small cages with the order to send them to the kitchens.

The other three prisoners were all wounded in one way or another. Cal seemed like he had a broken leg as well as a deep gash on his arm. Champ and Shirley both had head wounds, but at least no one seemed to be in any danger of death. Those unhurt did their best to help out their friends and once that was done, all they could do was wait.

No one came to check on them until night had fallen. A large, intimidating man entered the jailhouse and looked them over. In size and bulk, this man rivaled Gladio, but his features were much fairer. None of the captives did or said anything while the man looked them over one by one, as if appraising them.

When his eyes landed on Noctis, a smile slid across his face that was neither welcoming nor friendly.

“Well, I think I know what I’m doing tonight,” the man grinned as he pulled open the cell door and bodily pulled Noctis out. The others tried to stop him, but this man was not someone to be messed with. Even with their numbers, they were no match and Noctis was hauled away screaming.

“Ooh, that’s a pretty thing, Capra,” someone said as Noctis was dragged through the camp.

Noctis clawed and kicked at the man, but he just laughed at the prince’s efforts. Eventually, they entered what must have been the largest house in the Ark. It was huge and ornate and once Capra got them to their final destination, the bedroom, he saw nothing but the finest bedding and furniture. Noctis’s stomach dropped when he was thrown on the bed. He had a feeling this was the direction this encounter was going to go, but it didn’t make it any more bearable.

“You have got to be the prettiest thing on this Ark,” Capra said, crawling over Noctis who was trying to squirm away. “Shame on the River Tribe to keep such beauty to themselves.”

One hand grabbed Noctis’s wrists and pinned them over his head while the other started to push his shirt up his chest. Noctis wriggled and kicked, but the man was too bulky and he couldn’t get a good hit in. “Stop! Don’t!” Noctis cried.

Capra leaned down close to Noctis’s face before licking a strip from his neck to his ear. “You are going to make the perfect bride,” Capra whispered, grinding his hips down and making Noctis whimper.

Before Capra could do anything else, there was a loud explosion from somewhere across the camp. “What the hell?” Capra said as he ran out the bedroom, Noctis completely forgotten.

It took him longer than it should have to gather his wits and think to run, but that whole encounter was making his skin crawl. Eventually, though, he realized he needed to move. Outside, he saw he didn’t need to worry about guards or anything as everyone was running to the source of the explosion. There was smoke and fire coming from the area closest to the main gate, so Noctis headed off the other way.

He had no idea where he was going or if he could even get out. He thought he should probably try to rescue the others, but he couldn’t abide the thought of that man touching him again. So, he ran until he found the outer wall. He followed the wall until he found a small door that was locked only from the inside. It took nothing for him to pop the lock and get out. He had to get as far away as possible and not die. Two things that seemed impossible in the dark night. Noctis stumbled his way down a path barely lit by the moon and was seriously just waiting for the fatal trip to happen that sent him flying and breaking his neck.

That didn’t happen as not five minutes later did some flying beast grab him by the shoulders and take off. Noctis would have screamed if he wasn’t so shocked or scared. The force of the grab knocked the breath out him as well, so screaming wouldn’t have been possible initially anyway. Instead, he just gripped at the animal’s feet and prayed that he wasn’t dropped.

He’d been expecting the animal to turn around and head back to the mountain camp, but whoever was steering did not go that way. They flew on, in the same direction that Noctis had been running and only began to descend once they reached the redwoods.

Noctis was dropped onto a wooden platform. The landing was hard and without any sort of grace and before he could think to whether he should be scared or thankful for the rescue, a familiar excited bark sounded and Vesper was quick to make her way around his neck nuzzling and nipping in affection.

“Vesper!” he cried, burying his face into her fur. “I never thought I’d see you again.”

“Apologies for the rather hectic rescue,” Noctis’s head snapped up to the owner of the voice, “but Capra kind of forced my hand.”

“Ignis,” Noctis whispered, completely unbelieving as to who he was seeing.

The other man smiled. “Noctis.”

In an instant Noctis had his arms around his adviser, head buried into his chest and crying. It took a long time for Ignis to calm him down, but neither had anywhere to be and both were content to hold the other.

Eventually Ignis got them to a bench and detached himself long enough to grab some food and water. There wasn’t much, as this platform was more of a respite for himself and Gladio, but they always kept some provisions.

“So you’re in the Mountain Tribe and Gladio is with the Redwood Tribe?” Noctis asked after eating for the first time in over a day. Ignis told him of his time on the Ark while Noctis ate. He and Gladio found each other pretty quickly and spent some time building this treehouse in the redwoods where they could go to get away from their tribes and try to work out plans for escape. “All everyone said about the Mountain Tribe was that they were tyrannical. Is that true?”

“Yes,” Ignis sighed. “Capra has it in his mind that the Ark should be ruled by one man and he should be that man. He and most of his ilk were terrible to work with, but they were well supplied and had a lot of useful information. The key to getting off this planet is at one of the obelisks, but I haven’t gotten a chance to get to one.”

“Prompto says his tribe keeps the red one pretty well guarded,” Noctis said and Ignis was glad to know that Prompto was safe. Vesper, who had been sniffing around the platform, wary of Apricot, Ignis’s Tapejera and Calico, one of two Archaeopteryxes that stayed in the forest (Ignis had sent Calico’s mate, Cielos, to tell Gladio to come to their hideout), was once again back in Noctis’s lap. “How did you know to get Vesper?”

“I watched you come in and heard you yell her name from the jail. I figured she might be important,” Ignis smiled, scratching the otter under the chin. “I had to say your name over and over again before she understood I meant no harm, but we came to an understanding.”

“What was with the fire and explosions?”

“Well, I was going to get you out in a much more peaceful manner, but when I saw Capra take you to his house, I knew there was no time. He has this disgusting want to make brides out of prisoners,” Ignis made a face. “Slightly panicked, I did the only thing I could think to do, and that was set off a bomb in the forge. All the gunpowder went up in smoke and that gave me enough time to grab Apricot and then chase you down.”

“Will they come for you?”

“Yes. As far as I’m aware, they don’t know that this is where I go, but they know I go somewhere. Once they can’t find myself or Apricot, they’ll know who created the diversion and they will hunt me down.”

Noctis hummed in response. After a moment, he leaned into Ignis’s body, feeling the warmth and love that he didn’t think he’d ever get to experience again. Ignis shifted just enough so they could slot their bodies against one another even tighter.

“I can’t believe you’d blow up the camp of the scariest dude ever for me.”

“Noctis, I’d burn the world for you.”

Noctis lifted his head up to look Ignis in the eyes. For a brief moment, he debated with himself before deciding to just go for what his heart wanted. His heart wanted Ignis and so he leaned up and kissed him.

Part of him was sure that Ignis would pull away, say it was a mistake, or that it was improper, but all Ignis did was wrap his arms tighter around Noctis and deepen the kiss. Suddenly, Noctis was wondering if his adviser had wanted this as long as he had.

At some point, and Noctis couldn’t say when, Ignis had managed to get him into the little house on the platform and into the bed there. Shirts joined shoes on the floor, but no more undressing was done. They just basked in the feeling of being together again. Skin touching skin like some sort of dirty secret. They touched and kissed and held each other close until both fell into the best sleep either had had since coming to the Ark.

~*~*~*~*~

Noctis woke to find himself alone in bed. That was quickly remedied by Vesper jumping up to be sure he was awake, but Ignis’s warm body was gone. As he fully came back into consciousness, he realized there were voices outside.

“Look, I don’t care if you bring someone here for that,” Gladio’s amused voice was heard, “just be sure the birds are aware not to come get me.”

There was some response from Ignis, but Noctis couldn’t make it out as he was stretching and yawning at the time.

“And what was going on at your camp last night? We could see the lightshow from our place.”

Ignis had started in on the explanation but was abruptly cut off by the hissing and barking of Vesper. Having no idea what had caused his otter to react like that, Noctis finally got out of bed and headed for the door. Vesper suddenly made a high pitched squeak and Gladio asked “What’s with the rabid otter?”

As soon as Noctis reached the door, he could see what was bothering Vesper. There was a huge bear-cat creature (a baby behemoth?) sitting on the platform and it currently had the little otter squirming between its jaws.

“She’s not rabid,” Noctis said, glaring Gladio. “Tell your beast to put her down.”

Gladio blinked and stared with his mouth slightly agape at his prince standing there in naught but pants. He then glanced over at Ignis to eye the mark left on his collarbone before smirking. “Amber, put it down.”

The creature opened its mouth to let Vesper fall and once on the ground, the otter was hissing again as she made her way up Noctis’s body (he was regretting the lack of shirt) and around his neck. Amber seemed indifferent to the noise and settled herself into a lying position, head resting on her front paws.

“So, who made the first move?” Gladio asked, pulling Noctis close and ruffling his hair. He laughed as the prince started to swat at his hands.

“What do you care?” Noctis asked at the same time Ignis said, “Don’t be crass.”

“Prompto and I have had a bet, I just want to know if I won.”

“Wait, what? Betting on what?” Noctis asked.

“Which of you would finally cave and let the other know how you feel,” Gladio grinned.

“What?” the others said at the same time, both looking horrified at the thought of being so obvious.

“Guys, it was the four of us in close quarters for a long time, we picked up on a few things.” The others exchanged a glance but said nothing so Gladio continued. “So, Noctis, please say it was you so I can get a few hundred gil off of the chocobo.”

“Wait, Prompto betted against me?!”

“That is really the takeaway here?” Ignis asked, rolling his eyes. “I suppose you will get your gil, Gladio, as it was Noctis who initiated it.”

“I’ll buy you a beer once we get home,” Gladio said, punching Noctis on the shoulder. “So, care to explain to me…everything?”

So, Ignis did. He explained what happened at camp and what his plans for the immediate future were. Noctis said he needed to get back to his tribe so that he could let them know what had happened and to drop off Vesper. If they managed to get off the Ark, like Ignis seemed to think they could, he wanted her safe. They would also have to stop off to get Prompto.

The issue was getting to the required places quickly. Ignis could take Noctis and get around on Apricot easily enough, but Gladio was too heavy and would have to rely on Amber. In the end, Gladio set off on his own to get to the red obelisk where the others would meet him once their tasks were done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If Noctis hadn't already been aware of Gladio's presence in the Ark, he totally would have done the run and hug thing as he did with Prompto and Ignis. Not shone is Gladio pulling him into a giant bear hug once an angry otter is no longer around his shoulders. :D
> 
>  
> 
> Time constraints kept me from finishing it, so third chapter should be the end of this silly little story. :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang's all here and it's time to figure out how to get off this Astrals-forsaken rock.

“This is terrifying,” Noctis yelled as he held tight to Apricot’s saddle.

“It must be better than being in her claws,” Ignis laughed, leaning forward enough so that he could place a quick kiss to the back of his head.

“Still, terrifying!” Vesper squeaked in agreement while the two Archaeopteryxes seemed happy with the flight.

Noctis had them land in the middle of the river camp, jumping off immediately to pacify his tribe and maybe to enjoy having two feet on the ground.

Steve came up immediately and asked what happened. Only one of the Iguanodons returned and they were getting ready to head out to find the lost. Noctis explained everything, the attack, where they were taken. He feared those that hadn’t joined him in the mountain camp were dead and Ignis had to agree that was likely the case. It would be to the River Tribe’s advantage to hurry and try to rescue as most of their armory should have exploded, but Ignis assured them that Capra would make it top priority to resupply. It was also lucky that Capra will have now figured out Ignis was the one to blame. Capra apparently had a one track mind and he would spend all his resources into bringing Ignis to justice.

Ignis quickly created a map of the camp to show Steve and the other warriors the best ways to infiltrate while Noctis said his goodbyes to Vesper. It was hard. The little otter had been with him since the beginning and he hated to leave her behind. However, he worried that Vesper wouldn’t survive whatever they were about to go up against (Ignis gave some vague notion of a battle) and he’d never forgive himself if she were to die. Instead, he handed her over to the main animal wrangler after many hugs and tears. Vesper could certainly understand something was going on and she tried to comfort her human the best she could.

It was Ignis that eventually had to pull him away. He also left Cielos and Calico with the River Tribe, knowing they would have a good life there.

“Will you be alright?” Ignis asked as they took to the air again.

“Yeah,” Noctis sniffed. “I know she’s safe but I sure am going to miss her.” This time when Ignis leaned forward, he rested his chin on Noctis’s shoulder, pressing soft kisses to his cheek.

Tapejera flight was amazing (if terrifying), Noctis decided, when they landed outside the Woodsmen camp a little while later. Without having to worry about obstacles, river crossings, or skirting around dinosaurs, they got there so much quicker.

Once again, as soon as they landed, Noctis hopped off Apricot. This time he yelled up at the camp’s guards. He was glad that he was recognized by them, else it may have been a lot harder getting them to find Prompto.

“Noct! What’s up?” Prompto asked as he joined him.

The prince’s response was to slap him hard across the shoulder and say, “You betted against me?!”

To say that Prompto was confused was an understatement, but fortunately Ignis was there to keep things on track.

“Really, Highness? There are more important things—”

“IGGY!” Prompto yelled seeing his friend while bounding over to give a tight hug. Within a few minutes, Prompto had been filled in on what was going on. He took a little time to run back into camp to take care of a few things like saying goodbye to his dinosaurs and his friends, before he hopped on the back seat of Apricot’s saddle and the flying reptile took off towards the red obelisk.

~*~*~*~*~

Noctis and Prompto were dropped off in a little cave on the island just south of the obelisk while Ignis went to find Gladio and lead him back.

There was a camp set up in the cave, complete with notes that Ignis had meticulously taken and a chest that opened up to reveal a lot of weird and gross things. 

“Dude, is that a brain?” Prompto asked, staring at the jar Noctis had lifted from the chest. “What has he been doing here?”

Noctis had no answer, so he carefully set the offending object back in the chest and closed the lid as if they’d never looked in.

It was wonderful to have the gang back together again. Everything felt safe and whole now that it was four. Noctis didn’t realize how much he had lost without them, almost as if they were part of his soul that had been ripped from him but were now back together. He couldn’t help but laugh as Gladio gloated over winning the bet, Prompto being all surly and yelling at Ignis about it, and Ignis just standing there pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

“Okay, look,” Ignis finally said, quieting everyone. “I’ve been doing a lot of work figuring out what we need to make use of the obelisk.”

“Does that work include brains?” Prompto asked, looking disgusted.

“Yes,” the other said as if it were the most natural thing in the world to have brains on hand for a project. “It includes lots of things that are undesirable and hard to get. It was not easy pilfering the required items from underneath Capra’s nose. It was hard enough getting access to his information on the obelisk.

“It seems he and some of the other initial test subjects tried to make use of the obelisk to get home, but whatever’s on the other side killed all but him. He barely made it out alive and he started his campaign to rule the Ark so that he would have the power to destroy what nearly destroyed him.”

“I bet that’s why Cadence keeps guards on it,” Prompto mused, “to keep him out.”

“And likely to keep anyone else from trying to go in and get slaughtered,” Ignis said.

“So what are the items and what do you do with them?” Gladio asked.

“Some are benign, just trophies you get if you explore the caves. Proof you got in and out alive.” Ignis pulled out one of said trophies. “This is the Artifact of the Strong.”

“And the not-benign ones?”

Noctis noticed he wasn’t the only one making a face when Ignis pulled out a jar that had a heart floating in it.

“Heart of a Giga,” Ignis said, trying hard to not make a similar face as the others. “Allosaurus brain, Yutyrannus lungs, and a few others.”

“That is disgusting,” Prompto said. The others agreed. Why would anyone want to take the time to cut out hearts or lungs to prove their worth? At least hunts back home only required severed ears or tails; still not pleasant, but at least it’s fast and a lot less bloody.

“Indeed.”

“So we take these things to the obelisk and stuff them inside?” Gladio asked. “I’ve never been up close to one of those things, but there doesn’t seem to be an easy way to climb up inside of one.”

“There’s…something at the base that should have all the instructions. Hopefully. Capra’s notes didn’t go into great detail about making an offering.”

“And what will we find on the other side?” Noctis questioned. “Can’t say I want to fight something that scares Capra. Especially without access to the armiger.”

Ignis was quiet for a moment and the others didn’t think that was a good sign. “I don’t know what’s on the other side. Something large, scaley, and fire breathing.”

“A dragon?” Prompto suggested.

“Possibly, though it seems out of place with what’s around us. If you’ve read some of the dossiers, you’ll notice that all of the creatures here once lived on another planet but are now extinct. One of the notes says something about dragons and griffons among other ‘fantasy animals’ being kept out of this world of science.”

“Okay, whatever. How do we fight it if we can’t get access to our weapons?” Noctis asked. He was really hoping that Ignis had a solution to the problem. He missed being able to pull things out at will.

“I…don’t know,” Ignis admitted. “This has been a long, slow process of getting information and materials. I hadn’t even begun thinking about weaponry, though I assume I would have systematically stolen them from Capra.”

“Do you think there is a way for Noct to access the armiger?” Gladio asked. “I assumed it was completely cut off, but if he can feel it…”

Before Ignis could answer, Noctis said, “Do you think we could short circuit the implant?”

“How do you mean?” Ignis asked.

“I was told that there are jellyfish and electric eels that can give you quite a shock. Ivy said that one of the tribesmen got hit by one and couldn’t get his hologram thing to work for a few days. Perhaps if I get zapped—”

“NO!” was the universal response to that idea. All three of the others said it together.

“That’s nuts,” Prompto added.

“We are not going to put your life in danger like that,” Ignis said.

Noctis frowned. “Look, if Capra is the asshole everyone says he is, he’s gonna hunt us down. I’d rather get off this Ark before he finds us. If I can get into the armiger, I can get out everyone’s weapons and have our curative supplies ready. If all we’re lacking at this point is weaponry, let me get electrocuted.”

Ignis and Prompto were still very anti-electrocution, but Gladio sat in thought while those three argued.

“I think he should do it,” he finally said, causing all to look his way.

“Gladiolus! You are his shield, you are supposed to protect him!” Ignis cried.

“I’m aware of that. And I think the best way to protect him is to get him off this Ark and get him home. Do I want him to get shocked? Hell no. But right now it’s our best option.”

“Thank you, Gladio,” Noctis said.

“Jellyfish sometimes hang near the shore,” Gladio told Noctis, ignoring the grievances coming from Ignis. “I saw some on my way here. We just got to get one as close to shore as possible and be ready to pull you out as soon as it attacks. Either by man power or Apricot.”

“Yeah,” he responded. He wasn’t particularly looking forward to this experience, but if he could reach his armiger again, he was willing to try.

~*~*~*~*~

They waited until evening before attempting at electrocute their prince. It was just dark enough for the bioluminescence of the jellyfish to make them stand out and thus easy to track. It was also still light enough that Ignis and Apricot could see Noctis in case they needed to swoop in and get him.

The first thing they did was try to lure the jellyfish closer to the shore. Apricot flew Noctis in her claws and dropped him near-ish the animals. When one of them started to come closer, Apricot went in and picked him up, only to drop him off again.

It was nerve-wracking, all this baiting. Noctis suddenly realized he knew what a fishing lure had to feel like. Each time he fell in the water, Apricot would wait just a little longer before she picked him up. Ignis was trying to keep the jellyfish interested, allowing it to get closer and closer. All the while, Noctis felt helpless. Every instinct of his was telling him to swim away as fast as he could, but he held himself as calm as he could.

Until he felt the sharp sting of a million tiny harpoons sink into his skin as one of the tentacles wrapped around his leg. He didn’t have time to scream or even react in anyway before electricity started to course through him as the animal dragged him down. He was aware of the pain for a few seconds before everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger!
> 
> Or it just seemed like the best place to cut the chapter off. Last (hopefully) chapter will be up soon.
> 
> Also, I would like to think that the River Tribe got their friends back. Capra probably emptied out the camp in search of Ignis, leaving only the weak behind. Steve and the others didn't have any issues getting in and out with their comrades.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> End battle time

“This was such a dumb idea.”

“He’s going to be fine.”

“FINE?! You had to do the whole CPR thing on him! How is that fine?!”

Noctis groaned and threw an arm over his eyes. The sound of Gladio and Prompto arguing and the torchlight of the cave was giving him such a headache.

“Noctis?” Ignis voice came, quiet, calming, and reassuring. “Are you alright?”

“Headache,” he murmured and without thinking, he willed a potion into his hand and cracked it. The magic seeped into his body and the pain that was persistent throughout disappeared. The headache improved, though it didn’t completely go away.

A few seconds passed before he jolted up into a seated position. “It worked!” he yelled, calling his engine blade and returning it back into the armiger as soon as it was in his hand. “Thank the Six it worked!” He brought it out again and then pulled out Ignis’s daggers, Prompto’s gun, and Gladio’s sword, leaving them all out in case the implant should repair itself and cut him off again. He then thought to bring out all their curatives, or at least what they could easily carry on their own.

As soon as he had finished pulling everything out, he sighed a happy sigh. It felt good to be able to pull from whatever realm the armiger was in again. He almost wanted to just keep bringing things in and out, make up for the months of not being able to. But before he could started, Ignis pulled him into a hug and held him close, burying his face into Noctis’s neck.

“Hey, I’m alright,” Noctis said. Ignis just held tighter.

“You stopped breathing,” Prompto said, coming to sit in front of him, looking frightened. “If Gladio hadn’t done CPR, you wouldn’t have started again. Kinda freaked us out, dude.”

“Thanks, Gladio,” Noctis said, looking up at his shield.

“Yeah, well, just don’t do it again. Iggy’ll have a heart attack.”

“Deal.”

~*~*~*~*~

They waited a full day before heading to the obelisk. The wait was to serve two purposes: they wanted Noctis to fully recover from the jellyfish attack and they needed Ignis to recover from the thought of losing his prince before he could work out any sort of strategy.

The day that they spent in the cave, Ignis hardly left Noctis’s side, doing anything and everything he could to help Noctis through the day. Prompto laughed at it and Gladio rolled his eyes saying that Ignis will coddle him forever now. Noctis wanted to be annoyed, but he liked having Ignis so close.

By dinner time, Ignis had come up with a plan on getting to the obelisk. Prompto gave what information he had on the Woodsmen who guarded it. They were the tribes fiercest warriors and apparently did all sorts of special training to be picked to guard there.

“There’s only one way onto the platform, and that’ll have the best guards,” Prompto said. “Other guards hang around the outer edge of the area while one or two stay on the platform itself.”

“So our best bet would be not use the road on,” Ignis said. He then looked at Gladio. “Do you think Amber can make the jump from the outer wall to the inner pillar?”

“Maybe? But I think I’d rather have her swim it,” Gladio answered. “We’ll already be in the water to cross back over from this island, might as well make the entire journey that way. Then we can just climb up the pillar itself.”

“Can that beast really climb up a sheer cliff?” Noctis asked. Amber made a low growl at the word ‘beast.’

“She’s a Thylacoleo, not a beast, and yes she can.” He scratched the animal behind the ears.

“Okay, Gladio gets there on Amber and we get there on Apricot, but then what?” Noctis asked.

“We take down the guards on the platform with tranq arrows,” Ignis said. “I hate to hurt them, but I think it’s easiest that way.”

“Eh, they’ll get over it once they see their brand new thyla and tapa,” Prompto grinned.

“How long do you think it’ll be before the other guards figure out something is going on?” Ignis asked.

With a shrug, the blonde answered, “I’m not sure. Could be seconds or minutes. Maybe they won’t notice since it’ll be dark.”

Ignis hummed at that response, obviously not liking it. “We’ll just have to move as fast as possible.”

Anything beyond getting to the platform was unplannable. They had no idea what to expect at the obelisk, they didn’t know how to work it, and Six knew what waited for them on the other side. The others could see Ignis was nervous about all the variables, but there was really nothing to be done.

“Well, shall we get going?” Gladio asked.

“What, now?” Ignis asked. “Tonight?”

“Why not? Noctis still has access to the armiger. We don’t know how long that will last. If we go now, we can at least make our lives easier by throwing all that shit in the armiger and not have to carry it.”

“But…”

“We aren’t going to get any more prepared, Iggy,” Gladio said. “I know you’re worried. I know you’re thinking nothing but the worst after what happened with the jellyfish, but it’s time. The sooner we do this, the sooner we are home.”

“Assuming it’ll take us home,” Prompto muttered. Since no one had left the Ark to anyone’s knowledge anyway, no one was sure what waited after killing the beast of the obelisk. It was a big gamble going in.

Ignis closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before opening them again. “Apologies. You are correct. I’m letting my emotions take over.”

“You and Noct can have all the emotional time you want once we get home,” Gladio grinned. “But we gotta get there first!”

“Right.”

They ate as much food as they could, doing their best to empty out the stores of the cave. Noctis then went around tossing everything they needed into the armiger, as well as Ignis’s notes. It might be fun to look back at them one day.

With everything cleared out, Gladio hopped on Amber (careful not to hit her with his sword, they did still worry about losing access to their weapons) while the other three got on Apricot. With nods of readiness all around, they slipped from the cave into the dark of night.

The night was on their side, as the moon was only a sliver, thus cutting down on the amount of light to go through. The obelisk cast a red light on everything around it, but it didn’t do much else. So long as you weren’t making big movements, it was still difficult to see anything out of the ordinary.

From above, Noctis, Ignis, and Prompto watched as Gladio and Amber swam across the waterway that separated the small island they were on from the larger one. Sharks were known to move through the area, so they waited with baited breath until Gladio was safe on main shore. They then watched as Amber swam them to the pillar holding the obelisk and start to climb their way up.

That was their cue to move in closer as well. There were two guards on the platform, sitting on the edge of a metal plinth, talking. Any other guards around the obelisk were obscured by the same darkness that kept them unseen. With any luck, they could knock two guards out without them raising any alarms. Steering Apricot closer to them, Ignis had her hover as still as possible while Noctis and Prompto lined up shots with their crossbows. No one doubted Prompto’s ability to hit his target, which he did easily, but Noctis was the wildcard. He was a good enough shot usually, but they needed more than good enough at this point.

When his arrow missed, Noctis cursed as they watched his target turn around to see where his buddy had slumped. Before he could shout an alarm, Prompto had already loaded up another arrow and shot the man just the same. The tranquilizers worked fast and both men were knocked out well before words could actually form in their mouths.

“What would you do without me?” Prompto grinned as they landed. Noctis didn’t feel the need to answer.

He and Ignis immediately ran to the center post to try to figure out how to make the offerings to the obelisk. Gladio and Prompto kept an eye out for anyone who might be headed up to stop them.

“So, what do we do?” Noctis asked.

“I don’t know,” Ignis said, looking at the screen that flashed up when he hit the big button. “It says what we need, but not how to use it.”

There was a shout from across the way, signaling their discovery. More and more voices were heard and they were certainly getting closer.

“Iggy, do something!” Gladio yelled as he watched several tribesmen walk up the walkway to the platform. He had his sword at the ready, but he really didn’t want to use it against the innocent.

“I don’t know!” Ignis cried, trying frantically to find somewhere to put their offerings. This would be their only chance and it seemed like it would pass them by. The advancing tribesmen seemed wary of the weapons Gladio and Prompto had, but they still looked ready attack.

Pteronadons started circling above them, aiming bolas at them. One hit Prompto, knocking him over with a shout causing Gladio to stand in front of him. In desperation, Noctis pulled out the Allosaurus brain, just to see if he could shove it somewhere. As soon he put it at his feet so that he could bend down to look around, the brain disappeared and the screen in front of Ignis indicated the offering was accepted.

“Brilliant,” Ignis said in quiet relief as Noctis quickly pulled each item out and dropped it on the ground.

As soon as the last one went in, a red dome encircled them. There was a countdown on the screen telling them that they had thirty seconds to change their minds. The four men stood in the middle as the Woodsmen circled around, yelling at them to come out. When the timer hit zero, there was a sensation that felt akin to warping to Noctis and then they found themselves in the middle of a volcano. There were rivers of lava cutting through wrecked ruins as dark clouds circled above them.

“It’s Titan all over again,” Noctis grumbled, pulling his engine blade to the ready.

“Does anyone see the beast?” Gladio asked, but the entire area seemed to be devoid of life.

That is until there was a roar above them and Prompto, now free of the bola, pointed out the giant dragon circling.

“That’s a dragon,” Prompto muttered. That was followed by a cry of “That’s a DRAGON!”

“It’s fine, we can handle a dragon,” Noctis said, sounding much more confident than he felt. It had been months since he or the others had held their weapons and fought alongside each other. It should come back to them as easy as breathing, shouldn’t it?

The warriors watched as the dragon circled high above them. They listened to it roar and they nervously gripped their weapons as they waited.

They were so focused on the dragon, that they did not notice the group of Dimorphs and Pteronadons swooping in from behind.

“SHIT!” Gladio yelled, swiping at them with one big swing, cutting several down. “It’s got minions!”

“Where did they come from?!” Prompto asked, panicked, as he started taking aim.

“Ignis, we need a plan!” Gladio yelled.

The dragon circled closer as the men took out the remaining flyers. There was a slight breath of relief, but it only lasted a second. The dragon landed with a roar, shaking the ground as it hit. A new round of minions started in, snapping and clawing at any bit of human they could get. There was no focusing on the dragon with the flyers there. 

Gladio had the best chance at knocking them down because they kept close. Prompto was almost completely useless, there was too much movement too close and any time he tried to back up, he was hounded. Ignis tried to get to the dragon, swiping through beating wings, but getting nowhere. Noctis had the best chance, his warping opened with the armiger, but there was no way he could take the dragon down on his own. Any time he got on the head with hopes of stabbing it through the eye, the creature shook his head so violently Noctis either had to hang on or warp off.

The dragon took off and the men managed to get rid of the current round of flyers. They then backed away to a clump of rocks to hide and take a breather.

“Iggy, we really need a plan here,” Gladio said, breathing hard. They all were. They were all tired and clawed and burned before they took potions to alleviate the worst of the pain.

“Noct, do you have any magic flasks? Ice in particular?” Ignis asked.

“Uh…” Noctis mentally felt through the armiger and willed a flask into his hand. He handed it to Ignis and then managed to pull out two more. “That’s all I’ve got.”

“Okay, what’s the plan?” Gladio asked.

“We need to get the dragon to swallow at least one of these. Freeze it from the inside out. Gladio, you keep those damned flyers at bay and we’ll do our best to shove one in its mouth.” There was a roar that was a lot closer than it had been. “Are we ready?”

“No, but let’s go,” Prompto replied as the other two nodded their heads.

They ran out to meet the beast, Gladio with his back to dragon, waiting for the flyers and taking them down with broad swipes as they neared. The dragon roared and Noctis threw his flask straight at its mouth, but it shattered on a tooth. It wasn’t what they wanted, but it startled the animal just enough that they got the advantage. Ignis aggravated it further by hitting the animal in the eye. Screaming in anger, Prompto took the opportunity to get his flask down the throat. It worked instantly, the dragon swallowed reflexively, and a second later ice was seen spreading across its belly. All it took at that point was a few well-placed hits to finish the dragon off.

As soon as it fell dead, the flyers that had been harassing Gladio just disappeared, but nothing else happened. The area got deadly silent, save for the low rumble of the volcano. Exhausted, the men collapsed against one another and waited. Noctis threw all their weapons back in the armiger, but there was nothing else to do.

It was a solid minute before anything happened. As they sat there in the silence, they suddenly felt their bodies rise. There was barely any time to look at each other before they disappeared from the arena.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so, this is completely ignoring the Tek boss...mostly because I didn't know it existed until about half an hour ago. So, pretend the Dragon is the end boss. They skipped over the first two. Oh! Bonus points to me as the Red Obelisk is how you get to the dragon! I thought I was gonna have to hand wave that too.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Epilogue

“Are you boys alrigh’?” a familiar voice cut through Noctis’s consciousness. Slowly, he managed to get his eyes open and saw he was in the Regalia. He was slumped against the door with one leg resting on the console between the front seats.

Next to him, Gladio had a leg and arm slung over the door. Ignis was slumped over the steering wheel and Prompto had sunk more into the floorboard than in his seat.

Everyone was slowly coming to, moaning and groaning as they started moving their limbs and stretching their backs.

It was Prompto that first registered Cindy was watching them, concerned. It was also Prompto that realized they were all very much naked. She laughed as he squeaked in fear but dutifully turned around while they worked to get dressed. She promised she didn’t get close enough to look once she saw they were without clothes.

Prompto wasn’t sure he believed that, and once dressed, he just shrank as far into the seat as he could get.

“So, what happened?” Cindy asked. “A hunter called to say they saw the ol’ girl here with no sign of you. I came to see what I could do to help only to find ya’ll.”

‘Here’ was the side of the road with the nose of the Regalia into the guardrail. The car was scratched up only on the nose, but it was clear she slid quite a ways before coming to a stop.

“I’m not sure you’d believe us if we told you,” Ignis said.

“I’m not sure I believe us,” Noctis muttered. He was looking at his left forearm where the implant had been. There was no indication that it had ever existed.

“Would you be so kind as to tow us back to Hammerhead?” Ignis asked, which Cindy was more than happy to do.

While she hooked the Regalia up to her truck, the four gathered in a circle. No one was quite sure what to say, all wondering if it had been a joint hallucination. Cindy had said she got the call the day before and there was little chance it’d take more than a day or two before someone saw the abandoned Regalia. Had they really only been gone for three days? Had they been gone at all?

It was then that Noctis remembered throwing Ignis’s notes in the armiger before they left the cave. He quickly pulled it out and sure enough, all the information that Ignis had gathered on the animals and obelisks was inside.

“I can’t believe all that happened,” Prompto said.

“Yeah, it seems surreal,” Gladio agreed. “I hope to gods we never have to do any of that again.”

“Agreed,” Noctis said with Prompto.

“All good!” Cindy called. Gladio grabbed Prompto around the bicep and dragged the embarrassed blonde towards the cab. Noctis went to follow, but Ignis held him back.

The prince smiled as Ignis spun him around to face him. “I hope there are some things you would like to do again,” Ignis said, sliding his hand through Noctis’s dark hair.

Noctis’s grin got wider, “And so much more,” he said as he leaned up to meet Ignis’s lips with the sounds of wolf whistles coming from behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it! I'm done! It got way longer than I thought it would be.
> 
> If (and it's a big if) I do more with this, it'll be Ignis's point of view. But big if. I want to get back to baby IgNocts for a bit.


End file.
